On motion of Chris Bittle, it was agreed, — That Anthony Housefather be elected Chair of the Committee.

At 8:51 a.m., Anthony Housefather took the Chair.

On motion of Michael Cooper, it was agreed, — That Ted Falk be elected First Vice-Chair of the Committee.

On motion of Rob Nicholson, it was agreed, — That Murray Rankin be elected Second Vice-Chair of the Committee.

On motion of Colin Fraser, it was agreed, — That the Committee retain, as needed and at the discretion of the Chair, the services of one or more analysts from the Library of Parliament to assist it in its work.

On motion of Chris Bittle, it was agreed, — That the Subcommittee on Agenda and Procedure be composed of five (5) members, including the Chair, the two (2) Vice-Chairs and two (2) Government members and that the quorum of the Subcommittee shall consist of at least three (3) members, including one member of the opposition.

On motion of Ron McKinnon, it was agreed, — That the Chair be authorized to hold meetings to receive evidence and to have that evidence printed when a quorum is not present, provided that at least three (3) members are present, including one member of the opposition.

On motion of Ahmed Hussen, it was agreed, — That only the Clerk of the Committee be authorized to distribute documents to members of the Committee and only when such documents exist in both official languages.

On motion of Colin Fraser, it was agreed, — That the Clerk of the Committee be authorized to make the necessary arrangements to provide working meals for the Committee and its Subcommittees.

On motion of Iqra Khalid, it was agreed, — That, if requested, reasonable travel, accommodation and living expenses be reimbursed to witnesses not exceeding two (2) representatives per organization; and that, in exceptional circumstances, payment for more representatives be made at the discretion of the Chair.

On motion of Chris Bittle, it was agreed, — That, unless otherwise ordered, each Committee member in attendance be allowed to have one (1) staff member attend in camera meetings. In addition, each party be allowed to have one (1) staff member from its Whip or House Leader’s Office attend in camera meetings.

On motion of Ahmed Hussen, it was agreed, — That one copy of the transcript of each in camera meeting be kept in the Committee Clerk’s office for consultation by members of the Committee.

On motion of Ron McKinnon, it was agreed, — That when a Private Members’ Bill is referred to the Committee, it be placed on the Agenda and that its sponsor be invited to appear before the Committee.

On motion of Chris Bittle, it was agreed, — That 48 hours’ notice be required for any substantive motion to be considered by the Committee, unless the susbstantive motion relates directly to business then under consideration; that the notice of motion be filed with the Clerk of the Committee and distributed to members in both official languages; and that completed motions received by the Clerk of the Committee by 5:00 p.m. be distributed to the members the same day.

On motion of Colin Fraser, it was agreed, — That witnesses be given ten (10) minutes to make their opening statement; and that during the questioning of witnesses the time allocated to each questioner be as follows: for the first round of questioning, six (6) minutes to a representative of each party in the following order: Conservative, Liberal, New Democratic Party, Liberal; for the second round, six (6) minutes be allocated in the following order: Liberal, Conservative, Liberal; followed by five (5) minutes for the Conservatives and three (3) minutes for the New Democratic Party.